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06/04/2004
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WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) OSCE Special Envoy Lenmarker Meets with Officials, Leaves for Karabagh 2) Yerevan Students Receive ARS Scholarships 3) May 28 Celebration in Fresno 4) A Joint ARF, Socialist Party of France statement 5) Hamidian Massacre Survivor Vartan Anooshian, Dies at 110 1) OSCE Special Envoy Lenmarker Meets with Officials, Leaves for Karabagh YEREVAN (Armenpress)--OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Chairman's special representative on the Mountainous Karabagh conflict Goran Lenmarker, on his second visit to Yerevan, met with government officials to discuss the current situation and explore ways of regulating the conflict. In meeting with Foreign Affairs Minister Vartan Oskanian, Lenmarker was informed of the present dynamics of the settlement process. After exchanging their views on prospects of a resolution to the long-standing conflict, Lenmarker said he intends to pay a fact-finding visit to Karabagh to become familiarized with the situation first-hand and meet with the residents. He noted the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's capability, together with other European organizations, of building a favorable climate around the conflict's regulation. Oskanian in turn stressed the enlargement of European's organizations' involvement in the regional issues, with both sides reiterating OSCE's vital role in ensuring regional security and cooperation. Lenmarker also visited the Armenian Parliament to meet with Speaker Arthur Baghdasarian, and outline the role of parliaments in establishing peace and cooperation. During the meeting, Baghdasarian stressed the necessity to include Karabagh in the negotiation process, as well as discussed European integration of the entire region and the importance of establishing close ties between regional countries. Lenmarker also met with the head of Armenian delegation in the OSCE National Assembly Vice Speaker Vahan Hovhannisian. The deputy speaker stated that Armenia adheres to a peaceful regulation of the conflict, adding that Turkey's role in the conflict must be unbiased and objective, as objectivity is one of the requirements in joining the European family. Lenmarker said his mission is to provide support to the efforts of OSCE Minsk group directed towards the regulation of the conflict in Karabagh. He articulated that the South Caucasian countries must be also included in the "Wider Europe: New Neighborhood" program. After the meeting, Lenmarker and Hovhannisian left for Karabagh. 2) Yerevan Students Receive ARS Scholarships YEREVAN (Yerkir)--The Armenian Relief Society (ARS) awarded eighty students from various schools in Yerevan, $100 scholarships based on academic achievement and need. The awards ceremony took place on Friday at the Writers House, where National Assembly Vice Speaker Vahan Hovhannisian congratulated the students, as well as the philanthropic organization for its valuable undertakings in the country and throughout the world. ARS Central Executive member and National Assembly representative Alvart Petrossian noted the scholarship program strives to promote and strengthen a love toward education in Armenia's student circles. ARS United States Western Region chairwoman Nova Hindoyan was also on hand to congratulate the students. The region allocated $2000 to the scholarship program, enabling 20 additional students to benefit. 3) May 28 Celebration in Fresno Vartouhi Rose Megerdichian bequeaths $200,000 to Fresno ARF chapter FRESNO--Fresno's Armenian community gathered at the Asbarez Armenian Center on May 22 to celebrate the 86th anniversary of Armenia's first independence. Organized by the PR committee of Fresno's Soghomon Tehlirian ARF chapter, the event drew not only ARF members and members of affiliate organizations, but also a large number of supporters. ARF Central Committee Representative Hovig Saliba delivered the Keynote address. To highlight the day's celebrations, it was announced that approximately $200,000 from the late Vartouhi Rose Megerdichian will would be forwarded to the Fresno Soghomon Tehlirian ARF Chapter, and that the main hall of Asbarez Center would be named the Vartouhi Rose Megerdichian hall. Vartouhi Megerdichian was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1921, and was the middle child of Michael and Nouritsa Akelian. Growing up in Lebanon, Vartouhi became interested in drama and joins the Hamazkayin Kaspar Ipegian Theatre group, in which she plays many a great roles. In 1960, Vartouhi marries American Armenian Megerdich Megerdichian, and relocates to Waukegan, Illinois, where she becomes a member of the Armenian Relief Society (ARS). The following year, the couple is blessed with daughter Julie Rose. Along with her family, Vartouhi moved to Fresno in 1964 and continues her work in the ARS, along with committed friends Sophia Hagopian, Marta Jamushian, and others. Last year, Vartouhi and her daughter Julie Rose died in a car accident. The news of their tragic death shook the entire Fresno Armenian community. The celebrations officially opened with a prayer offered by spiritual leader Vahan Gostanian, followed by a brief history of May 28, 1918 by Armenian school principal Rosine Bedrossian. Fresno ARF chapter representative Viken Yepremian, in presenting the message of the chapter, also conveyed that four youth had been inducted into the ARF ranks only hours before. In speaking about the fateful events of May 28, Keynote speaker Saliba said "The ARF's strength comes not only from our members, but also from those who stand by our side to uphold and protect the rights of the Armenian nation--whose life is filled to celebrate the victories of his nation, and address its concerns; these individuals are in effect Tashnagtsagans." Bedrossian conveyed Vartouhi Rose Megerdichian's biography, and invited Yepremian, who detailed the conditions of Vartouhi's will. Yepremian revealed that before her death, Vartouhi transferred the sum of $200,000 to her friend Adrine Postoian, asking that on her death, the sum be donated to the organization of her choice. Postoian decided to allocate the sum to the Fresno ARF Chapter. Taking the stage and holding back tears, Postoian recounts the life and achievements of the late Vartouhi Rose Megerdichian. Vartouhi's priorities in life, tells Postoian, were her family, Armenian education, and knowledge--as a knowledgeable mother, she guided her daughter Julie, an active Homenetmen member, as such. For more that 36 years, Vartouhi is a member of the Ladies Guild of Fresno's Holy Trinity Church--visiting the residents of the Armenian nursing home once a week with gifts--and traditional Armenian meals, and offering kind words for hours on end. Vartouhi carried a beautiful heart filled with the endearing qualities of a mother and a devout patriot. She gave selflessly to all. The Fresno Armenian community will forever remember them with feelings of obligation and love. 4) A Joint ARF, Socialist Party of France statement On the eve of the June 13, 2004 European Parliament elections, the executive body of the French Socialist Party, the Central Committee of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation Western Europe, and members of the Socialist International, reaffirm their deep connection with European democratic values and socialist character. During a June 3 meeting, ARF Bureau representative Hrant Margarian congratulated France's Socialist Party first secretary François Hollande for his party's firm stance on Turkey's entry into the European Union. A joint ARF, Socialist Party of France statement calling for Turkey's recognition of the Armenian Genocide was signed by ARF Western Europe Central Committee representative Mourad Papazian and Hollande at a joint press conference. 5) Hamidian Massacre Survivor Vartan Anooshian, Dies at 110 By Ara Anooshian Hairig, if you were nothing else but the wonderful father that you have been, you are worthy of the paeans I sing of you today. But you have been much more than that. We, your children, know your inspiring story and would like to share it with others, because we know that you are too modest and self-effacing to talk about yourself. So, with your permission, I shall tell a little of your story. I have learned much about your life, both from you and your older brother, Karnig, who lived with us for many years. We children called him "Aghbar" because that is what you called him. Aghbar was ten years your senior and became a grandfather figure for us. He was widely read, as you are. He had an encyclopedic knowledge of Armenian history, particularly the history of Haght, where both of you were born. Aghbar possessed a phenomenal memory and I consider him the finest oral historian I have known. I should note that some of the history of Haght I learned from you and Aghbar, I have been able to confirm by my later readings of HBF Lynch's "ArmeniaTravels and Studies" and Drtad Drtadian's "Haght Yev Haghetsinere." In telling my father's story, I must also talk about his birthplace, its history, his family, and the times and society into which he was born. As we know, these are the things that shape a person's life. By the Grace of God, on February 13, 2004, my father, Vartan Anooshian, observed his 110th birthday. It is also by the Grace of God that he did not perish before the age of two, for you see, my father is a survivor of the Hamidian Massacres of 1895. My father was born on February 13, 1894, in the village of Haght. Haght was part of the vilayet of Sebastia and about 25-30 miles east thereof. He is the youngest of the four children of Ghazar and Heghine Anooshian. Their other children were named Karnig, Kaloust and Kohar. I suspect that had he not been born in the month of February, the month of the Vartanantz, he, like his siblings, would have a name starting with the letter "K." Permit me to digress a moment and tell you something about Haght. Haght, by the way, means undefeated or victorious. History tells us that Haght and Sebastia regions were settled, under very strange circumstances, in the year 1021, by the Artzerouni King Senekerim whose kingdom had been in Vasburagan (Van). We are told that after more than twenty years of constant war against the Seljuk Turks, a war-weary King Senekerim sent his son, David, as his envoy, to the Byzantine Emperor Vasil II to negotiate an exchange of lands. By the terms of the agreement, King Senekerim ceded to Byzantine, his Vasburagan kingdom, consisting of some 7 fortresses, 400 villages and 8 towns, in exchange for lands approximately 400 miles to the west, namely, Haght and Sebastia; the exchange was completed by the resettlement by King Senekerim and his 14,000 subjects. It is thought that Senekerim felt that his kingdom would be protected from the Seljuks by the Byzantines. Shortly after the resettlement, King Senekerim built the renowned Sourp Hreshdagabed Vank in Haght. For 900 years, Sourp Hreshdagabed drew thousands of pilgrims from the Sebastia region on the Feast of Vartavar and the Feast of Sourp Hreshdagabed until the 1915 genocide, when it was totally destroyed by the Turks. The decision King Senekerim made in 1021 to cede his Vasburagan kingdom provoked harsh words and deeds almost 900 years later from, none other than, Khrimian Hairig. It appears that after King Senekerim died, his remains were returned to Vasburagan and interred in Varag Vank, in the vicinity of Van. Khrimian Hairig, who had become the Abbot of Varak Vank in the 1850s, ordered the removal of the royal canopy covering King Senekerim's tomb because he regarded him unworthy of recognition as royalty. Khrimian Hairig believed that Senekerim should have kept his kingdom and continued fighting the Seljuk Turks to the bitter end. Permit me to pick up the thread of my father's story. My father was about 1.5 years old when the Hamidian Massacres began in Haght in November, 1895. To escape the Turkish, Kurdish, and Circassian mobs incited by Sultan Hamid, the Haghtetsis began to flee to the surrounding mountains. My father's mother, Heghine, fearing that his crying might reveal the family's hiding place further up the mountainside, concealed my father in some undergrowth. The initial massacre and plunder lasted 3-4 days. It resumed again, more bloody than before, by strange coincidence, on November 5, 1895, the date of the Feast of Sourp Hreshdagabed lasting 2 more days. Finally, after the mob's bloodlust had been sated and it withdrew from Haght, the surviving villagers began their slow and fearful return to what remained of their homes. Miraculously, Heghine found the infant Vartan where she had concealed him. Amazingly, my father survived the 1895 massacres; it was regarded as an Act of Providence. At the beginning of 1900, the Tashnagtsoutiun was introduced into Haght and became the dominant partylargely because of Sepastatsi Mourad, the beloved fedayee freedom fighter. Mourad was from the neighboring village of Govdoun. Beginning in 1909, he became a regular visitor to Haght. Mourad preached the need for Haghtetsis to organize for their self-defense; he argued that the Young Turk Constitution of 1908, promising reforms for the Armenian people, was a sham and that the Young Turks could no more be trusted than the deposed Sultan Abdul Hamid. Mourad had a premonition that a terrible calamity was about to befall the Armenian people, one, far worse than the 1895 Massacres. As we now know, history proved him correct. My father has often spoken of Mourad's visits to Haght. He would fearlessly ride into the village, armed, astride Asdghig, his jet black stallion with the small white star-shaped spot in the center of its forehead. Remember, in those days, Armenians were forbidden to ride horses or own guns. In Mourad's case the Turkish authorities looked the other way, because they feared elimination by Turkish and Kurdish bandits that preyed on the peasants. He gladly obliged. My father's admiration for Mourad is unbounded. My father describes Mourad as being largely unschooled, but being extraordinary intelligent, intuitive and clairvoyant. He was also a brilliant orator, who spoke plainly so that all could understand his message. Mourad's constant message to the peasantry was simple, "First, the gun, second, the pen and third, the spade." He invariably would tell the Haghtetsis, "The Armenian people must have the means to defend themselves, so that this time they sell their lives dearly." I'm sure that you would not be surprised if I told you that we had a large framed photograph of Mourad, his wife and infant son, hanging in our living room. Two additional notes about Mourad may be of interest. Mourad dropped his own surname and adopted "Khrimian" because of his admiration for Khrimian Hairig. May family has another connection with Mourad; my maternal grandfather, Zagid, from Gavra, was a member of Mourad's fedayeen band. But, that is a story for another time. Once again, permit me to pick up thread of my father's story. After the 1895 massacres, the oppression and repression by the Turkish Government continued unabated. My father's parents, fearing for the lives of their sons, repeatedly advised their sons, "Leave this dog's country; there is no future for you here." Difficult, though it was, my father and his brothers, one by one, left Haght for America. It was especially painful for my Uncle Karnig, because he had to leave behind his wife and five children. The three brothers intended to come to America, earn money to send home, and, eventually, return to Haght when conditions there improved. So, in 1911, at the age of 17, my father came to America and joined his brothers in New York City. There, he found work and became a highly skilled silver platter and metal etcher. Alas, the 1915 Genocide ended all hope the brothers had of returning home to Haght: except for a few survivors, the Turks massacred their entire family. Tragically, my Uncle Karnig never learned the fate of his wife and five children; he died in 1958, never knowing if any of them had survived. In 1923, my father married my mother, Perouz who was from Gavra, a neighboring village. She had survived the Genocide of 1915 after suffering unspeakable horrors. Her's, too, is a story for another time. My parents had three children; I am the oldest, then, my sister, Alice or Azniv, and the youngest, Armen. Shortly after arriving in America, my father joined the ARF Armen Garo Gomideh. The Armen Garo Agoump was located on 3rd Avenue, between 26th and 27th Streets, in Manhattan, a few blocks from St. Illuminator's Cathedral. As a young boy, I sometimes accompanied my father to the Agoump. The Agoump housed a large library that was well frequented by the members. My father and Uncle Karnig also had a nice collection of Armenian books. I remember some of the titles: Raffi's "Khente," "Samuel," "Gaidzer," etc., as well as works by Shant, Zarian, Yessayan, Malkhas, among others. They subscribed to the Hairenik Daily and the Hairenik Monthly (Amsakir). They prized the Hairenik Monthly so highly that they had saved every issue and eventually had them hard-bound. My father was very active in a compatriotic organizations, namely, Haght Kiughi Verashinats Miutiun, Haght Kiughi Hairenagtsagan Miutiun, and the Mourad Fund. The Mourad Fund was organized by a number of admirers of Sepastatsi Mourad for the purpose of publishing his biography. After funds were raised, Michael Vartanian, the noted intellectual, writer, and editor of Hairenik Daily, was commissioned to write the biography. I recall that we had hundreds of copies of the book my father had volunteered to sell, stored in our apartment. The demand for the book proved to be greater than the supply, so much so, that he forgot to keep a copy for himself. Incidentally, I don't believe any money was made on the venture, but then again, it wasn't undertaken for that purpose. In most of the organizations to which my father belonged, he, invariably, was drafted to be Secretary. The other members would say that he had an "aghvor krich," meaning that he had legible handwriting. In the 1930s and 1940s, being the secretary of any organization was a burdensome undertaking. Obviously, no pay was given or expected to be received. My father would have to correspond, by mail, with members who lived all over the Eastern Seaboard, because most of them did not have a telephone. The only equipment my father had was a good fountain pen, a large bottle of ink and lots of patience. All correspondence was laboriously written by hand and repetitively recopied, over and over. Envelopes were then addressed by hand and postage stamps affixed. Of all the organizations he served, I know that he regards as most important, his service to the Aramian Varjaran as Trustee in the 1930s and 1940s. Aramian Varjaran classes were conducted in a single classroom in Public School 58, located at the corner of 176th Street and Washington Avenue, in the Bronx. We, students, attended classes there on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, between the hours of 3:30 PM, after American school dismissal. Although the School's operating expenses were $15 per month for classroom rent and $25 per month for the lone teacher's salary, money was a constant problem for the school. The tuition was 10 cents a week, but needy students did not pay even that. There never seemed to be enough money to pay the rent or the teacher on time. Remember, we were living in the midst of the Great Depression, when fathers, lucky enough to have work, were earning $10 to $12 per week. In those days, a loaf of bread sold for 5 cents and a quart of milk for 7 cents. The annual "hantes" sometimes produced a small surplus, but that was meager help. The chronic money shortage caused many in the community to question the viability of the Armenian School. The Varjaran's meetings were often held in our apartment and, as a young boy, I would overhear the heated discussions of the school trustees about the Varjaran's future. Some advocated closing the school, but my father would vehemently argue for continuing. Gradually, some of the trustees withdrew from active roles, suggesting that if my father wanted to continue the financial struggle, he could do so alone. I guess my father accepted the challenge and decided to find alternate sources of funds, whereupon, he compiled a list of Armenian businesses located in Manhattan, and on Friday evenings and Saturday afternoons, after work, he made the rounds of these businesses, soliciting funds for Aramian Varjaran. He rarely received more than $1, and occasionally, he would receive 10 cents. Many a businessmen not only refused to make any contribution at all, but also called my father a beggar and gratuitously suggested that if parents wanted an Armenian education for their children, they should pay for it themselves and not trouble others to do so. I can recall the many nights when my father would come home from his fundraising attempts, hungry, cold and wet, clutching the few dollars that he had collected. No amount of pleading and scolding by my mother for him to quit, had any effect on him; he stubbornly and doggedly continued. His determination helped enable Aramian Varjaran to survive beyond the end of World War II; at that point, the demographics of the Armenian community in the Bronx changed and Aramian Varjaran, finally, closed. You might wonder what was accomplished by keeping Aramian Varjaran open. For one thing, the Varjaran was able to retain the services of its dedicated and learned teacher, Deegeen Armenouhi Dicranian Aharonian. Digeen Aharonian came from a noted family and was the sister of the talented Armen Dicranian, the composer of the opera, "Anoush", and many other compositions. Furthermore, she was the wife of the well-known Vartkes Aharonian, son of the legendary Avedis Aharonian, President of the first Armenian republic and writer extraordinaire. Baron Aharonian had been Prosecutor-General of the first Armenian Republic, editor of the Hairenik, and prolific contributor to many Armenian and Russian publications. They were a dynamic team. Digeen Aharonian taught all the grades with no assistance. She instructed us in all the subjects; in addition, she directed us in dramatic and musical productions. As we in the upper grade approached graduation, Digeen Aharonian decided that we needed additional instruction. Accordingly, she required that we attend all day Saturday classes at her Washington Heights apartment. I must confess that we were not exactly thrilled to have to spend our Saturdays in study. As it turned out, the Saturday sessions became memorable. We soon discovered that the Aharonian home was a way station for some of the most legendary figures in contemporary Armenian history. It was there that I met Simon Vratzian and General Dro; later, I met General Sebouh. These thrilling encounters have remained with me to this day. I believe that my father's efforts to preserve Aramian Varjaran played an important role in its survival, which in turn enabled many children to receive Armenian education. My father's name, Anooshian, aptly describes his personality. He has always been a sweet, kind and gentle man, who never raised his voice to us, never scolded or spanked us. He has set an example for us by the way he has lived his life. He has encouraged us to value education and to pursue life-long study. He admires people who are learned and who have dedicated themselves to Armenian causes. His highest praise for a person is, "An ousial e," or An nvirvadz e." Hairig, for all you have done and for all you have been for us, "Mer khorhin shnorhagaloutiunnere." All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2004 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets.

Village of Discontent : Residents of Dimitrov charge they are being mistreated
By Zhanna Alexanyan ArmeniaNow reporter
ArmeniaNow
04June2004
During Soviet times Ararat Region’s Dimitrov village was populated
mainly by Assyrians. There were also Armenians living in the village,
but just a few. After Armenia became independent or, as villagers say,
“in the years of perestroika”, many people left, mostly the Assyrians.
Today, there is either 1,550 villagers or 550, depending on who
you listen to. The higher number comes from village head Ludwig
Khlkhatyan, who cites the total registered residents. Villagers say
the true population is closer to the lower number, about 30 percent
of which are Assyrian, and others refugees from Azerbaijan.
It is a small settlement, but big enough for political problems: Some
in the village accuse Khlkhatyan of misappropriating humanitarian
aid and of maintaining his office through election fraud.
After crops and gardens were damaged last year, International Food
Organization allotted 2,100 kilograms of wheat seeds for families
who suffered loss.
Villagers claim they never got the wheat, and lay the blame on village
head Khlkhatyan. They filed a complaint with the Prosecutor General’s
Office, charging that Khlkhatyan sold wheat intended as aid, and gave
some to friends, rather than to families who needed it.
Further, they claim that Khlkhatyan faked the signatures of the
villagers for whom the wheat was intended.
Villagers say they are always late with getting information about aid –
flour, potatoes, etc. – that is sent to the village.
“Humanitarian aid, which the government gives, is stolen and after that
they are surprised when people fill streets protesting and organizing
demonstrations. We have a lot to protest about but we lack fact and
this is the fact,” says villager Feodor Badalyan, showing a document
he of what he claims are faked signatures.
“If they fake our signatures can you imagine what else they do? Grabbed
wheat is a fact. Law-enforcement bodies love facts. The crime has
been committed and let it be solved,” says Assyrian Ernest Yakubov.
“We had no idea the aid was sent to village and I bought 150 kg. of
wheat for 180 drams (about 33 cents per kilo),” says Assyrian Liova.
However, villagers are more concerned with the fact of faking
signatures than about mis-assigned seeds. They allege that the village
head cohorts with those above him to make profit off of charity.
“So this is how they live on villagers. If head of the village is
punished then crimes committed by people of higher ranks will be
revealed and that’s why they protect him,” concludes specialist of
Russian and Assyrian languages Taisia Muradova.
Taisia Arsentievna, 79, was born in Dimitrov. She was deputy principal
of the school and is an Honored Teacher.
“For many years head of the village has been stealing and people see
that. But who gets ‘ Paros’ aid? Poor people don’t get the aid. Those,
who have cars and cattle, get the aid,” the teacher says. “The father
of head of the village says residents of Dimitrov are sheep and his
son is shepherd and he will treat them the way he wants. How long
are we going to live like this and be subjected to mockery?”
For his part, Khlkhatyan is confident of his actions. And, since the
Regional Prosecutor’s Office threw out the villagers’ case on grounds
that there was “absence of crime in the act”, he does not deny that
signatures were faked.
The 39-year old village head says it is wrong to give the villagers
humanitarian aid.
“They teach people to become beggars,” Khlkhatyan says. “It doesn’t
matter among whom I distributed aid as people would have complained in
any case. If they complain why did they elected me for the third time?”
Villagers answer that they didn’t, in fact, elect Khlkhatyan, but that
his election was assured by outdated election rosters that inflate
the number of voters.
The election list, Badalyan says “contains the names of dead
people. Many people are registered in the village but haven’t been
living here for a long time.”
A winning village head candidate must get two thirds of the
votes. Badalyan says there is no way the actual number of villagers
can outvote the number that were fraudulently counted for Khlkhatyan.
Villagers, both Assyrians and Armenians, are displeased with
administration of the region, especially with Minister of the Regional
Administration Hovik Abrahamyan.
Villagers say all positions in the region are held by relatives of
the minister, including the position responsible for the water pipe
supply, and water is the most painful problem in the village. As a
result of the lack of water people cannot grow vegetables, which is
a more profitable business than wheat (which requires less water).
“Everything dries up and dies and only then we get water,” says
villager Nadia Alaverdova. “That’s why people leave. And if Assyrians
had water and grew vegetables would they leave? They work in Krasnodar
and Rostov but in that case they would have worked here.”

Fighting for Life: “I couldn’t bury my daughter alive”
Yulia Kirnitski and Janar Amankulov, ArmeniaNow Interns
ArmeniaNow
04Jue2004
The little girl who has few reasons to smile is holding a ball that
says: “Smile ! Jesus loves you!”
Liana, age 10, was not expected to be alive by now. She has acute
myelogenous leucosis, one of the most fatal forms of leukemia.
Four months ago doctors told her father that the girl was too sick to
even bother staying in hospital. They told him to take her home. To
die.
“I couldn’t bury my daughter alive,” says Aram Givargizov, Liana’s
father. “I knew I had to do everything to save my child and I insisted
on her hospitalization.”
The disease has completely destroyed the girl’s bone marrow and
the level of white blood cells was 10 ten times below normal,
says the doctor who treats Liana at the Institute of Hematology,
Samvel Agatelyan.
In her first month of treatment, she had 25 blood transfusions because
of non-stop bleeding from her gums.
Liana lives with her parents and two sisters, in Upper Dvin, a village
of about 3,000 in the Artashat region, some 35 kilometers south of
Yerevan. Her father is Assyrian; her mother is Armenian.
At the end of last year the girl caught cold. There is no hospital
in Upper Dvin. There’s only one doctor, who examined Liana and said
she had a usual case of flu.
But when Liana’s health worsened, her parents took her to doctors in
Artashat. There, the discovery of her true condition was devastating
and incomprehensible.
“She never fell ill when she was little,” recalls Anna Khachaturyan,
Liana’s mother.
The doctor says that if she’d been brought to the hospital a week
later, it would have been impossible to save the girl.
Only 15 percent of patients with her diagnosis are cured. Intensive
treatment lasts a year and a half and consists of four courses. On
whole, patients have to be under a doctor’s observation for five
years to get the disease to a manageable level.
After the first course of treatment the girl’s state significantly
improved. The mother is happy saying, “Lianik’s analysis is clear.”
Agatelyan explains that “tissues of bone marrow have completely
recovered but there still are cancerous cells in the organism.”
After a month of being confined to bed the doctor allowed Liana to
walk, but not long. The first thing she did was ask her mother to
take her to a church and then to a merry-go-round. In the street
the girl never takes off her blue hat. It covers the balding effects
of chemotherapy.
Liana says that during the long days spent in hospital she likes
most of all to draw. Her drawings now decorate the pale walls of the
hospital ward. She especially likes drawing flowers and animals.
The first course of treatment cost $1000, says Anna. For a family
dependent on a teacher’s salary (an average of about $30 a month)
and whatever the garden produces to sell in market, the amount is
inconceivable.
But while money is hard to come by, the support of friends has
been plenty.
When villagers found out about Liana’s disease, they came to the
hospital to give blood. They also collected money. Anna says there was
a lot of support from the priest of Upper Dvin village, father Isahak.
Just recently Liana has started the second course of treatment. The
girl’s father says if they don’t manage to find money to continue
the treatment they’ll have to sell their only cow.
But giving up the family’s source of income would be a price worth
paying, especially seeing the improvement Liana has made in recent
weeks.
She remains in hospital. But these days, Liana can sometimes go
outside. She plays with her sisters and other kids at the hospital. And
the smiles in her room are not just on the ball in her hand.
(If you would like to send a letter of encouragement, or help Liana
and her family, write to us at [email protected])

FRENCH SOCIALIST LEADER URGES TURKEY TO RECOGNIZE SO- CALLED ARMENIAN
GENOCIDE FOR EU MEMBERSHIP
Turkishpress.com
Saturday June 5, 2004
French Socialist Party (SP) leader Francois Hollande yesterday said
that the European Union giving a date to Turkey to begin its accession
talks should be contingent on Ankara recognizing the so-called Armenian
genocide. In a joint press conference with Murat Papazyan, the European
head of Armenia’s Tashnak Party, Hollande said that in addition to the
Copenhagen criteria, Turkey should heed a 1987 European Parliament
1987 resolution calling for recognition of the so-called genocide,
withdrawal of Turkish troops from Cyprus and respect for human and
minority rights. /Milliyet/

Is Armenia an authoritarian state?
Yerkir
May 28, 2004
During parliamentary briefing on May 27 faction representatives
discussed more political development rather than legislative
activities.
Who is governing Armenia today? Is Armenia democratic? Did the
president behave accurately during the opposition activation
period? How is the legislative activity possible in terms of the
opposition boycotting? These questions were answered by all faction
except for the opposition which once again skipped the briefing.
ARF faction leader Levon Mkrtchian believes Armenia is now governed by
the constitution. The first person is the president who is responsible
for home and foreign policies. There is the political coalition which
has its share of responsibility. As to Robert Kocharian’s presidency,
he has been carrying out his functions and expressed his position at
every necessary point.
The leader of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) believes that
the presidents should have been stricter, since tolerance brings even
worse consequences.
Touching upon the estimation of an international legal organization
that called Armenia authoritative, Mkrtchian advised to consider
the purpose and period of the made assessment. “The activities of
such organizations have a subjective factor which implies certain
regional, geopolitical issues that do not exclude pressures,” said
Mkrtchian. “Our route is democracy, since otherwise we would not be
a member of many international prestigious organizations.”
Regarding these issues, leader of RPA Galust Sahakian said: “The
trouble is that any phrase and judgment of a foreigner is more
discussed than the issues of our national interests.”
Leader of the Orinats Yerkir faction Samvel Balasanian stated that
Armenia has a primary development stage of democracy.
As to the recessed dialogue, the coalition once again stated its
determination to bring the opposition back to the political field.
Levon Mkrtchian said: “The coalition always tried to get the opposition
back to dialogue, since otherwise political functions are passed to
the legal field.
The dialogues must take place not only between the coalition and the
opposition but the society must also be prepared for it. And the
society has mad clear its point: it wants t be able to peacefully
live and work in between the elections. It does not want shock.”
The political forces say the issue of depriving the boycotting
opposition of parliamentary mandates is not on the agenda, but it
can have more serious political consequences.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

[Congressional Record: June 2, 2004 (Extensions)]
[Page E993-E994]
>>From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:cr02jn04-73]
STATEMENT OF ERIC ROSENTHAL, REPRESENTATIVE OF THE UNITED STATES
INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL ON DISABILITIES (USCID) AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF
MENTAL DISABILITY RIGHTS INTERNATIONAL, ON “INTERNATIONAL DISABILITY
RIGHTS: THE PROPOSED UN CONVENTION”
______
HON. TOM LANTOS
of california
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, June 2, 2004
Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, on March 30th, the Congressional Human
Rights Caucus held a groundbreaking Members’ Briefing entitled,
“International Disability Rights: The Proposed UN Convention.” This
discussion of the global situation of people with disabilities was
intended to help establish disability rights issues as an integral part
of the general human rights discourse. The briefing brought together
the human rights community and the disability rights community, and it
raised awareness in Congress of the need to protect disability rights
under international law to the same extent as other human rights
through a binding UN convention on the rights of people with
disabilities.
Our expert witnesses included Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
Mark P. Lagon; the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Ecuador
to the United Nations, Ambassador Luis Gallegos; the United Nations
Director of the Division for Social Policy and Development in the
Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Johan Scholvinck; the
distinguished former Attorney General of the United States, former
Under-Secretary General of the United Nations and former Governor of
Pennsylvania, the Honorable Dick Thornburgh; the President of the
National Organization on Disability (NOD), Alan A. Reich; Kathy
Martinez, a member of the National Council on Disabilities (NCD); and a
representative of the United States International Council on
Disabilities (USCID) and Executive Director of Mental Disability Rights
International, Eric Rosenthal.
As I had announced earlier, I intend to place the important
statements of our witnesses in the Congressional Record, so that all of
my colleagues may profit from their expertise, and I ask that the
statement of Eric Rosenthal be placed at this point in the
Congressional Record.
The U.S. Congressional Human Rights Caucus: Members’ Briefing on the
United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
It is a great pleasure to be here for this historic
occasion. I would like to thank Representative Lantos, the
Congressional Human Rights Caucus, and the Disability Rights
Caucus for making this possible.
I’m a member of the board of the U.S. International Council
on Disability (USICD) and executive director of Mental
Disability Rights International (MDRI). I have spent more
than ten years in the field doing international human rights
work for people with disabilities–documenting human rights
abuses and training activists. There has been little
recognition of the vast worldwide pattern of human rights
abuses against people with disabilities that exists in the
world today–either by the U.S. government or the United
Nations. Thus, it is a great step forward to bring these
concerns to public attention today. This hearing provides an
invaluable opportunity to discuss what practical next steps
the U.S. Government can take to bring long over-due attention
to the rights of people with disabilities worldwide.
The most important leadership by a U.S. Agency, to date,
has been the work of the U.S. National Council on Disability
(NCD). Over the last few years, NCD has made an invaluable
contribution to advancing discussion and action on
international disability issues by convening International
Watch, a group of experts and leaders in the U.S. disability
community involved in international activities. In addition,
NCD has brought attention to this issue by commissioning two
important reports. In 2002, NCD commissioned Janet Lord of
the Landmine Survivors Network to write a detailed legal and
policy analysis of the need for a new UN disability rights
convention. I recommend that report as essential background
to today’s discussion about the need for a UN convention.
[[Page E994]]
In 2003, Professor Arlene Kanter and I had the honor of
serving as consultants to NCD as authors of a report, Foreign
Policy and Disability: Legislative Strategies and Civil
Rights Protection to Ensure Inclusion of People with
Disabilities. In this report, released at a U.S. Senate
briefing on September 9th, 2003, NCD cites numerous reports
over the last 10 years identifying the failure of U.S.
foreign assistance programs to respond to the needs of people
with disabilities. Not only have construction projects been
inaccessible to people with disabilities but many programs
have not been accessible to people with physical or mental
disabilities. More broadly, there has not been a concerted
effort to document, challenge, or overcome the vast problem
of human rights abuses to which people with disabilities are
subject worldwide.
NCD has called for the reform of U.S. foreign policy and
foreign assistance to ensure the inclusion of people with
disabilities in U.S. foreign policy, foreign assistance, and
all U.S. government and its activities abroad.
If we stand for the human rights of people with
disabilities, we must stand for it in our own actions as the
U.S. government. We must ensure that U.S. funded assistance
programs don’t discriminate. Indeed, we must ensure that
foreign assistance programs respond to needs and are fully
inclusive of people with disabilities.
We have recently made tremendous progress in Congress. I
would particularly like to acknowledge the work of Senator
Tom Harkin who championed historic new legislation in the
last session of Congress. The new legislation requires any
construction funded by USAID around the world to be
accessible to people with disabilities. It requires all U.S.
programs in Afghanistan and Iraq to be accessible to people
with disabilities, in conformity with USAID’s Policy Paper on
Disability. The most innovative new provision of legislation
makes enforcement of disability rights a precondition for
countries to receive funding under the new Millennium
Challenge Account. By creating financial incentives for
governments to take action on disablity rights, this law
establishes a specialized tool of foreign policy that will
help bring attention and pressure on governments to take
action. In the spirit of the NCD report, it is my hope that
MCA views this as more than a tool to use against
governments. It should be viewed as a mandate to help
governments, and non-governmental disability organizations
around the world, to meet these human rights and disability
rights goals. The NCD report calls on Congress to create a
“Fund for Inclusion,” setting aside funds to support for
the development of non-governmental disability rights
organizations.
Turning now to the question: why a convention? In ten
years, MDRI has documented human rights abuses against people
with mental disabilities in 21 countries on three continents.
I have seen untold human suffering in every country I have
visited. I’ve seen people locked away for their whole lives
in psychiatric hospitals, as well as institutions for people
with developmental or other disabilities. I have seen
children and I’ve seen grown men and women left naked,
covered in their own feces. MDRI recently documented a
situation in Paraguay where two boys were placed in an
institution by family members unable to care for them at home
without any form of governmental support. When the boys were
placed in the institution they probably had some form of
intellectual disability, but they wore clothing, they talked,
they interacted with people around them. For at least four
years, these boys were held naked in isolation with no
clothes, no toilet, no place to sleep other than a mat the
floor of a barren cell. They ate their food off the floor.
According to doctors at the facility, they became psychotic
as a result of the years of isolation and abuse. When we
visited them, they could no longer speak. All they did was
scream, howl, and grunt.
Their lives had been thrown away. The lives of 400 men and
women in that same psychiatric facility have been thrown
away. They live in isolation with little hope of returning to
society. Many are denied basic medical care, much less the
dignity of some privacy or their own clothing. In wealthier
countries, people may be detained in clean institutions with
new clothing. But their isolation from society and their pain
at being denied human contact may be much the same. Does the
international community speak out about these abuses? No. In
almost every country of the world, you can find people
relegated to the bleak, back wards of institutions–or
abandoned on the streets. That same experience has been going
on in many societies throughout the world. And the world has
failed to speak out time and time again.
The U.S. administration has said that the proper way to
deal with this is through domestic legislation, rather than
international human rights legislation. I beg to differ on
this point. As a matter of international law, there is a very
important difference between matters of purely domestic
concern and issues of international human rights. The
international legal framework is built upon the notion of
state sovereignty. Matters of social policy and of
educational policy, are protected by state sovereignty. And a
government may do what it will in that area. But the
international community has come to realize there are certain
principles of government practice that are not just matters
of state sovereignty. When governments deny their citizens
basic human dignity and autonomy, when they subject them to
extremes of suffering, when they segregate them from
society–we call these violations of fundamental human
rights. And when a country sinks so low as to deny the
fundamental rights of its citizen, the world will speak out.
We will hold governments accountable for the most extreme
abuses. That is why we need a convention. It’s not enough to
offer technical assistance on how to improve the law, we must
hold governments accountable for their violations.
Based on my observations as a human rights investigator
over the last ten years–and based on the near void of
activity by established human rights oversight bodies–I
believe that the abuses experienced by people with
disabilities around the world are the greatest international
human rights problem that goes unacknowledged in the world
today.
There are at least 600 million people with disabilities in
the world. How many thousands of people are segregated from
society in closed psychiatric facilities? By the thousands,
children and young adults with disabilities are placed in
orphanages and other institutions. I have met families in
Armenia, Turkey, Russia, and Mexico who were heart-broken
about placing their child in an institution–or who were
afraid that they might have to do so one day if they could no
longer provide care. I have met adults with mental
disabilities living a life of terror that they may be one day
forced into an institution if they cannot keep it together to
fend for themselves. I have met fathers, mothers, brothers,
husbands, wives who wanted to keep a relative at home with
them, but their governments do not provide services that will
allow families to stay together in the community. Heart
breaking as it is, parents are often forced to put their
children in orphanages. These are not orphans. These are
children orphaned by social and medical policy that say
they’re different and shouldn’t have a chance to live as a
part of society at large. Social policies that needlessly
segregate people from society are a form of discrimination.
Legal systems that do not protect against arbitrary detention
permit ongoing violations of human rights.
These are just a few of the abuses that can be addressed by
a disability rights convention. This is why we must commit
ourselves to speaking out. We must make it a priority of our
human rights agenda to end such intolerable abuses against
people with disabilities everywhere.
This Congress has adopted legislation establishing that
human rights will be the core of our foreign policy. We must
ensure that this promise extends to people with disabilities.
When governments strip whole groups of citizens of their
rights because of a disability, when governments put people
away, or when they allow them to die on the streets with no
dignified form of assistance, those are human rights abuses.
Challenging such abuses should becomes the core of our
foreign policy.
In its last session, this Congress made invaluable steps in
the right direction by revising our foreign assistance laws.
Now let us explicitly recognize the concerns of people with
disabilities as part of the pantheon of international human
rights issues. I strongly encourage and appreciate the work
of those members of Congress who have supported resolution
169. I call on all members to do the same.
I would like to leave you with one last thought. Over the
years, I have personally encountered hundreds of children and
adults, old men and old women who have spent most of their
life behind bars. It is amazingly easy to write these people
off as subhuman. As if they are already the walking dead. Yet
I have also seen a glimpse of hope in their eyes. With the
smallest amount of respect for their dignity, people come to
life. The tiniest hint of a possibility that a man or woman
might one day leave the institution can give that person a
reason to go on living. What does it matter that people far
across the waters care about them and their rights? It is a
reason to go on living. Members of Congress, you have a
chance to contribute to their reason for living. You have an
ability to contribute to give them hope. In your careers,
this may be one of the least costly and greatest
opportunities to challenge abuses of hundreds of millions of
people. Please take that action. Please support Resolution
169. And please support the U.N. Disability Rights
Convention.
____________________

Saturday Review: Paperbacks: Fiction
ISOBEL MONTGOMERY AND DAVID JAYS
The Guardian – United Kingdom
Jun 05, 2004
A Few Short Notes on Tropical Butterflies, by John Murray (Penguin, pounds
7.99)
A writer of short stories who has a medical background at once
suggests comparisons to Chekhov, but in the case of John Murray
they are worth drawing. The viewpoints in this collection are richer
than one would expect in a debut and the stories have an austerity,
almost a severity, born, one suspects, of Murray’s experiences as a
doctor in the developing world. Second-generation immigrants to the
US, often of Indian parentage, crisis-raddled or simply confused,
his characters struggle with what it means to be human. Murray grants
them epiphanies in Indian cholera treatment centres or refugee camps
on the Rwandan border; his stories are old-fashioned, yet refreshingly
bold when so many writing-school graduates do not venture beyond the
insular discontents of consumer culture. “What difference can any
of us make?” is a question worth raising, and one that Murray forces
his characters to face head on.
Isobel Montgomery
The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini (Bloomsbury, pounds 6.99)
It is easy to see why Sam Mendes wants to film this wonderfully
vivid debut, which sets a coming-of-age story against Afghanistan’s
recent history. Amir and Hassan are motherless boys growing up in
Kabul just before the coup that deposed the last Afghan king. Amir
is Pashtun, a Sunni and privileged, while Hassan is the son of the
family servant, Shia and a member of the Hazara minority – making
theirs a friendship that cannot survive childhood. Its climax is
Kabul’s yearly kite-fighting festival in which the pair’s victory
culminates in Amir’s betrayal of Hassan. Amir is haunted by his
cowardice throughout invasion, escape and exile in America, and it
is only the fall of the Taliban that offers him an opportunity to
redress the wrong he has done his best friend. Hosseini brilliantly
personalises a place and a history for a western audience, but his
eagerness to match political upheaval with emotional crisis makes
the narrative over-determined. Isobel Montgomery
Buddha Da, by Anne Donovan (Canongate, pounds 7.99)
You can get used to anything . . . almost. But a dad who would “dae
anythin for a laugh so he wid; went doon the shops wi a perra knickers
on his heid” is much easier to cope with than one who announces “Ah’m
gaun doon the Buddhist Centre for a couple of hours”. Next thing he is
chasing round Glasgow with a trio of monks trying to track down the
reincarnation of a lama; then, before his family realises that this
is more than one of his fads, he has swapped drink for meditation and
is telling his wife he wants to practise celibacy. Told in a rich
Glaswegian through the alternating voices of Jimmy, his wife and
their 12-year-old daughter, Anne Donovan’s portrayal of a Damascene
conversion in an ordinary household is warm, if not always funny. She
not only makes the practical problems of religious fervour central
to the story, but within pages the dialect writing becomes something
to savour rather than stumble over. Isobel Montgomery
Gilgamesh, by Joan London (Atlantic Books, pounds 7.99)
Nunderup only just makes it on to the map of Australia; there’s nothing
there but hard work and hard faces. When Edith’s plump British cousin
and his handsome Armenian friend visit, imaginative horizons open –
and she gets pregnant. Armenia nags at her like a necessary dream,
until she slips away, baby in one arm, suitcase in the other. Edith
makes it to a dispiriting England and on to the Orient Express,
defying the approaching war until she attains her fabled Armenia. She
finds a disconcertingly real place, its hazy air laden with petrol
and protest. The ancient epic Gilgamesh , about friends who travel
the world and dare death together, haunts this book, even though
Edith feels it’s a Boys’ Own legend. Nothing happens to women, she
protests: “It’s not their story . . . women get stuck.” Her quest
is none the less achingly brave, and in this beautiful first novel,
the deceptively calm pages contain a turbulent, heroic longing.
David Jays
The Stranger at the Palazzo d’Oro, by Paul Theroux (Penguin, pounds
7.99)
In the title tale of Theroux’s collection, American artist Gil Mariner
returns to a snooty hotel in Taormina. He remembers a Sicilian summer
40 years earlier, when as a young traveller he was uncomfortably
coopted by a wealthy German countess. Softened up by luxury and
teased by the Countess’s breast with its “lovely smooth snout”, Gil
became a bedroom flunkey, playing self-hating sexual games. Theroux is
known for travel writing and fiction set abroad – other stories here
visit South Africa, Vegas and Hawaii – but this novella is stained by
grubby braggadocio. Better are the bewildering intimations of sexual
knowledge in “A Judas Memoir”. In four linked episodes, a Catholic boy
stumbles towards queasy adult knowledge in small-town America. Guilt,
disgust and betrayal snag his imagination, prompted by vicious nuns,
stagnant holy water and a priest pawing his scout troop with scaly
hands. David Jays
Living Nowhere, by John Burnside (Vintage, pounds 7.99)
Don’t believe the death certificates, says Burnside – everyone
in Corby dies of disappointment. The Northamptonshire town was
hollowed out when its steel plant closed in the 80s, but this novel
opens 20 years earlier, with the families who sought a new life
there. Everyone comes from somewhere else, no one considers it home –
not the Scottish Camerons nor the Latvian Ruckerts, each a family at
sea, especially after the friendship between teenage Francis and Jan
ends violently. The plant steeps the community in “a miasma of steel
and carbon and ore”, the smuts and stink staining even the snow. The
characters maintain a conviction that home is somewhere in the past
or future, but Burnside writes so forcefully about the pitiless town
that you miss it when Francis does a bunk, wandering from Scotland
to California. Writing with a poet’s electric apprehension of the
material world, Burnside puts the ghosts back into a town without
history. David Jays

One-Minute Interview: Kurds know how they view the world but how does the world view them?
By Bashdar Ismaeel
London (KurdishMedia.com)
5nd June 2004:
Interview with Margot R. Main.
Margot R. Main is an American lady currently residing in New York City.
Margot comes from a legal background and is a great supporter of the
Kurds and Kurdish issue and is active in KurdishMedia.com.
When did you first hear about the Kurds and how?
In 1991 when American news reported on the uprising in Northern Iraq by
Iraqi Kurds and the subsequent “no fly zone” that was enforced by NATO.
Where is Kurdistan?
Smack dab in the middle of a rock and a hard place; S. Turkey, N. Iraq,
Syria and Iran, up to the tip of Armenia.
Briefly, what do you know about Kurdistan, its history and itâ^À^Ùs
people?
Briefly? Well, I am a writer!
To hide and protect the most beautiful women in the world from
vengeful deities; in the beginning, angles gathered the most beautiful
women from all over the planet and hid them in the mountains of
Kurdistan. The angels blessed the land and chose the original Kurdish
tribe (Yezidis) to protect these beautiful women. Itâ^À^Ùs from
these beautiful women Kurds were born. This is why all Kurdish women
are beautiful and why Kurdish men respect and adore beautiful women
today.
However, this theory of origination may also help to explain why Kurds
have been continually persecuted for over 7,000 years. Originally,
the fighting began when Arabs and Turks tried to steal the beautiful
women away from the Kurds. The Kurds fought them off and forever
sealed the trust of the beautiful women. However, over time Arabs
and Turks became increasingly jealous that all the beautiful women
in the entire world chose to remain with their “guardian angels” –
the Kurds. This jealousy eventually turned to racism then later to
full-on rage and hate.
As the years wore on the fighting continued. Kurds began to use
ever more of their blessed resources to effectively do their duty to
protect their beautiful women. Unfortunately, the resources started
to become scarce and the Kurdish men become vulnerable to the plague
of “inferiority complex”. The beautiful women, having sealed their
trust to Kurds, committed themselves to fighting this plague that
was eating their Kurdish protectors alive.
They began to take up arms and weapons and help protect the land
that housed their guardians who had protected them from vengeful
deities thousands of years earlier. The Kurds (who now included all
the Kurdish descendants of the world â^À^Ùs most beautiful women)
became forever bound to themselves and their land. They took a vow
to protect each other and the land the angels had blessed for them
thousands of years earlier. This vow was heard by the angels and
demonstrated the depth of commitment by the Kurds. However, even
though the angels approved, they knew to bless the Kurds with even
more physical beauty and strength would be to increase the hate and
jealousy of Turks and Arabs. Thus, the angels blessed the Kurds hearts
with an abundance of compassion, empathy and love.
And that is why the Kurds are the most beautiful souls on the planet
today.
Today, Kurds stand strong in the face of opposition; but, also,
know when to yield to not completely destroy the land.
What is you opinion about the Kurdish issue and how to you propose
it to be resolved? In a series of steps. The first step will be the
inclusion of Kurd Federalism in the New Iraq Constitution/Transitional
Law. The second step will be the establishment of Kurdistan as a
protectorate of either the US, NATO or a shared protectorate US/EU. The
third and final step will be the final establishment of a Kurdistan
and an independent nation.
Where you for or against the war in Iraq?
Way FOR!
Do you blame U.S foreign policy for the problems in Iraq and the
Middle East?
No. U.S. foreign policy is developed and encouraged by and with the
consent of Middle East “leaders” and Europe.
Whatâ^À^Ùs your view on the current situation in Iraq e.g. violence
and killings in Falluja?
Iraq has a lot of problems that Iraq has to work out. Itâ^À^Ùs
easier to hate a faceless America than it is to try to get along with
your neighbours.

School to welcome new principal
Metz to take reins at SoPas Middle
By Mary Bender , Staff Writer
Friday, June 04, 2004
Pasadena Star News
SOUTH PASADENA — A school that has become the district’s focal
point will get a new principal this summer, as the board of
education Thursday night unanimously hired a Glendale assistant
principal. Mercedes Metz, who works at Woodrow Wilson Middle School in
Glendale, will take the reins of South Pasadena Middle School, perhaps
as early as July 1. Her salary will range from $85,344 to $92,379.
“Her students describe her as ‘cool,’ ‘ Superintendent Mike Hendricks
said, introducing Metz to the five-member board, also noting that
she is “highly organized.’ Metz was one of 25 candidates.
“Thank you for this vote of confidence. I’m thrilled to be here,’
Metz told the board.
“The future is going to be bright,’ she said, pledging to uphold
“rigorous standards’ at the middle school, “in an environment that’s
going to be truly nurturing.’
About 1,000 sixth- , seventh- and eighth-graders are enrolled at South
Pasadena Middle School. The campus will undergo a major expansion
and renovation in the coming years, a project to be paid for with a
$29 million bond approved by voters in 2002.
The school board and district staff are in the thick of planning and
environmental review for the project.
Metz is a 10-year veteran of Glendale Unified, where she began her
career as a substitute teacher. She then won a permanent teaching
post at John Muir Elementary School in 1995.
She began transitioning into administrative work in 1999, with posts at
Eleanor Toll Middle School, before moving to the assistant principal’s
office at Wilson in 2001.
“She’s a very hard worker (and) she’s very bright. I’m losing a very
good person. She’ll certainly be missed here,’ said Richard Lucas,
principal at Wilson.
“I’ve seen her grow in three years quite a bit, and I think she’ll
be a wonderful principal there.’
Wilson has 1,286 students, mostly seventh- and eighth-graders, with
just a smattering of sixth- graders who win the right to enroll under
a district lottery, Lucas said.
The Glendale campus is racially diverse, with Armenian students
accounting for 34 percent of the enrollment, Latinos 24 percent, Asians
predominantly Korean 12 percent, and Filipinos 7 percent, Lucas said.
It’s not clear when Metz’s duties will be complete at Wilson, because
she had been named principal of the summer school, which runs June
30 to Aug. 6.
The principal’s post at South Pasadena Middle School had been
the center of controversy as the April 28 application deadline
approached. Parents and a open-meeting watchdog criticized the work
of an eight- member committee, appointed by school board President
Tammy Godley to help encourage qualified candidates to apply.
In recent years, there has been considerable turnover among the
middle school’s principals: Rich Boccia served one year before
returning to the Pasadena Unified School District, and Katy Schneider,
his successor, won the job two years ago. Schneider submitted her
resignation in March.
Meanwhile, 28 people applied to become South Pasadena Unified School
District’s next superintendent. The application deadline was May 27.
Hendricks’ last day is June 30; in a closed-door meeting in February,
the school board decided not to renew his contract. Godley said
Thursday night that the field will be whittled to 10 superintendent
candidates, who will be interviewed next week.
— Mary Bender can be reached at (626) 578-6300, Ext. 4456 or by
e-mail at [email protected] .

Missionaries retire in peace
RICHARD DYMOND
Herald Staff Writer
Posted on Sat, Jun. 05, 2004
EAST MANATEE – In a village of salmon and pale green duplexes just
off State Road 64, roughly 100 retired missionaries and their spouses
live quiet lives surrounded by swaying palms and four man-made lakes
stocked with fish.
But the stillness of Bradenton Missionary Village doesn’t silence
the strong emotions these retirees feel for their brethren serving
in missionary fields around the world.
“On Thursday, missionary doctors were killed in north Afghanistan,”
said Berge Najarian, 79, who had a 25-year missionary career in the
Middle East, Caribbean and Africa. “But this is a calling. Even though
we are always in danger, we feel safe in the center of God’s will.”
Established in 1980 by Anthony T. Rossi, the founder of Tropicana
Products Inc., Bradenton Missionary Village allows needy retired
missionaries to live rent-free for as long as they can live
independently. Many of these residents worked 20 to 40 years as
Christian missionaries and came away with no money for rent or to
buy a home.
Najarian, whose parents escaped the Armenian massacres in Turkey,
estimates he earned only $3,000 or $4,000 yearly in his missionary
life. When he began in the 1960s, he and his family received only
$100 a month plus free rent.
“I thank God for this place every day,” said Najarian, who has a
duplex on the 300-acre tract, about 200 acres of which are scheduled
to be sold to developers.
Rossi was a born-again Christian whose second wife, Sanna, was a
missionary, said Ken Solomon, 77, a Pennsylvania-born resident who
spent 14 years in Argentina and 11 years in Colombia.
“Before Mr. Rossi passed away, he sold Tropicana and a large part
of that money went to create the Aurora Foundation that supports
Missionary Village,” Solomon said.
Rossi, who was 92 when he died in 1993, left the president’s chair at
Tropicana a year after the company’s stock was purchased by Beatrice
Food Co. in 1978 for $490 million.
There is a handsome picture of him in the Rossi Activities Center,
which includes a large cafeteria, a well-stocked library and offices.
The cafeteria serves a sumptuous lunch meal for residents and their
guests every day for $3.
“We are all a lot more plump than we were in the field,” Solomon
kids. “The food is great here.”
Every Friday morning, many retirees attend a worship service and
prayer requests. Most residents spend their days volunteering at
area hospitals, churches and nursing homes. On Sundays, there are
no services in the Village, allowing the retirees to attend their
own churches.
There are also two swimming pools, shuffleboard courts and a Jacuzzi.
But the pleasant surroundings and the sound of birds in the trees
that rim the Village don’t keep out the outside world and all its news.
“Recently I read about the killing of one of our pastors in Colombia,”
Solomon said. “It was discovered that he was slain by Satan worshippers
who were opposing the spread of the gospel.”
Solomon dodged bullets himself during 11 years in Medellin, Colombia,
from 1973 to 1984. Fights between guerrillas and government troops
would lead to scattered gunfire.
“Once we had to duck in the doorway of a shop while bullets were
flying,” Solomon said. “Sometimes I would have to keep parishioners
at our church inside until the shooting was over.
“But you know, I never experienced any great fear,” Solomon added. “I’m
not especially brave. But we knew our lives were in his hands.”
Fred Kowalchuk, 79, served 30 years in Peru and 12 in Spain. One year
a rumor spread through the jungles of Peru that the U.S. government
was rendering people into grease for atomic weapons, Kowalchuk said.
“We were told that people would greet us with shotguns when we came,”
Kowalchuk said. “We never had trouble. But I was at peace. When you
place yourself in God’s hands, if he wants to take you, he takes you.”
Richard Dymond, East Manatee reporter, can be reached at
[email protected] and 782-5517.